Premium Member

So I finally got off my butt and took care of two things that have been bugging me for a LONG time, like, ever since I bought my Cruze long.

Driving up behind any Cruze and you see this:

(Over exposed to show the shadows)

Not only is the lower center section of the rear facia not painted black like it should be (the RS kinda gets it right, but not really), you can also see the hideous grey muffler hanging down. Models with the Z-link rear suspension cover this up a little, but it's still there and still ugly.

Here's an overexposed shot showing the "after", and from a little lower angle than the first example. Notice, not only does the facia look 100x better with the center black (this is no secret), but the muffler pretty much disappears:

In my most humble of opinions, this is definitely how the car should have looked from the factory.

Here's a properly exposed shot to better show the look:

I did this with 3M 1080 semi-gloss black vinyl. It was a bit of a pita to get it stretched on properly with no wrinkles since the rear is curved so much, but it works. I painted the muffler and tail pipe with good old Tremclad semi-gloss black after wiping it clean.

Thanks to my neighbors who, at just the right time, had visitors driving a white Cruze so I could just walk out the front door and get a good before/after shot!

Premium Member

Yes, but I find plastidip to have a very matte finish that doesn't look very OEM... it sometimes doesn't look very black, almost looking grey because it's so matte. That, and on large flat surfaces it is difficult to get it to look even.

I think PD would be much easier to do, however. The vinyl wrap definitely takes some patience.

Resident Forum Drunkard

I stated this about the rear Bumper and how so many other Makes and Model Vehichle gave an appearance that was way better then the Cruzens rear Bumper as a solid color ...with that delicate touch and patience and a keen eye for detail that rear is a vast improvement over the OE Bumper ...
Wallah a proper looking rear Bumper !

Jan.2015 - MOTM - Feb /19/2011to 4/24/2015 cruzen , IT
4/24/2015 Mustang.
If you cannot Respect your Elders than Maybe you will learn to Respect your Betters ! this will save your Life when you think that you are just Grown enough to Take upon yourself to Bully another more mature MAN .

Premium Member

I have Plasti dipped mine and removed it a few times. That's what I love about the PD. I can easily add or remove it based on my mood. After reading your post this morning, I decided to PD my rear diffuser and the front lower grill again this afternoon. Sprayed 3 coats about 30 minutes apart. Completely done about an hour later with only a few minutes of work, and it looks great.

Registered

Yes, but I find plastidip to have a very matte finish that doesn't look very OEM... it sometimes doesn't look very black, almost looking grey because it's so matte. That, and on large flat surfaces it is difficult to get it to look even.

I think PD would be much easier to do, however. The vinyl wrap definitely takes some patience.

Looks good! I like the matte finish of plastic dip. Is that removable if you have to get it back to stock for some reason? I do think the blacked out diffuser does make a difference and should of came that way from the factory.

Moderator

Having an all black car, the PD won't really do much for me. The muffler does need to be black or removed. I'll debate that when I decide if the rear bumper will or won't be replaced with an RS bumper that better hides the muffler and exhaust tip.

My other car did come blacked out from the factory making me question why not our cars? Less paint = savings?

Premium Member

Looks good! I like the matte finish of plastic dip. Is that removable if you have to get it back to stock for some reason? I do think the blacked out diffuser does make a difference and should of came that way from the factory.

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